Understanding the Needs of Arab Learners with Dyslexia for Adaptive Systems

Dyslexia is a universal reading difficulty independent of ethnicity or race. It is sensitive, though, to language and is affected by the language’s structure and orthography. Also, there are non-reading difficulties that cooccur with dyslexia, such as memory problems and low levels of self-esteem. Due to the lack of research in the Arabic language, this study aims to understand the needs of Arab learners with dyslexia in order to design adaptive interactive educational tools (IET)s based on their needs. To this end, the common reading and non-reading difficulties of learners with dyslexia and the features that the special education teachers (SPET)s prefer to either add or avoid when designing any IET, were explored in schools in Saudi Arabia, from the SPETs’ perspective. It was found that vowel letter dyslexia and visual dyslexia are the most common reading difficulties and that dictation difficulty and attention deficit are the most common non-reading difficulties. Hierarchical and Modelling teaching strategies are the teaching approaches that, from the SPETs’ perspective, most improved the reading of learners with dyslexia. Finally, pictures and sounds should be used in the design of IETs, while using many colours and loud sounds should be avoided.

Content

Author and article information

Contributors

Hadeel Mohammed Al-Dawsari

Robert Hendley

Conference

Publication date: July 2022

Publication date (Print): July 2022

Pages: 1-10

Affiliations

[0001]Computer Sciences Department

Princess Nourah Bint Abdulrahman University

Riyadh

Saudi Arabia

[0002]School of Computer Science

University of Birmingham

Birmingham

UK

Article

DOI: 10.14236/ewic/HCI2022.13

SO-VID: bb970678-b06d-4347-87f3-20f3ba060000

License:

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 Unported License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Conference name: 35th International BCS Human-Computer Interaction Conference

Conference acronym: HCI2022

Conference number: 35

Conference location: Keele, Staffordshire

Conference date: July 11th to 13th, 2022

Conference sponsor: Electronic Workshops in Computing (eWiC)

Conference theme: Towards a Human-Centred Digital Society

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1477-9358 BCS Learning & Development

Self URI (article page): https://www.scienceopen.com/hosted-document?doi=10.14236/ewic/HCI2022.13

Self URI (journal page): https://ewic.bcs.org/

REFERENCES

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Alghabban, W. and Hendley, R. (2020). The Impact of Adaptation Based on Students’ Dyslexia Type: An Empirical Evaluation of Students’ Satisfaction. Adjunct Publication Of The 28th ACM Conference On User Modeling, Adaptation And Personalization. New York: Association for Computing Machinery. 41-46.
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Comments

Comment on this article

[1] Abu-Rabia, S., Share, D. and Mansour, M. (2003).Word recognition and basic cognitive processes among reading-disabled and normal readers in Arabic. Reading And Writing, 16(5). 423-442.

[2] Alghabban, W. and Hendley, R. (2020). The Impact of Adaptation Based on Students’ Dyslexia Type: An Empirical Evaluation of Students’ Satisfaction. Adjunct Publication Of The 28th ACM Conference On User Modeling, Adaptation And Personalization. New York: Association for Computing Machinery. 41-46.

[3] Aljojo, N., Munshi, A., Almukadi, W., Hossain, A., Omar, N., Aqel, B., Almhuemli, S., Asirri, F. and Alshamasi, A. (2018) Arabic Alphabetic Puzzle Game Using Eye Tracking and Chatbot for Dyslexia. International Journal Of Interactive Mobile Technologies (iJIM), 12(5). 58-80.

[4] AlRowais, F., Wald, M. and Wills, G. (2013). An Arabic framework for dyslexia training tools. 1st International Conference On Technology For Helping People With Special Needs (ICTHP-2013). 19-20 February 2013. 63-68.

[5] Al-Shareef, L. (2017) A study of provision for specific learning difficulties (dyslexia) in primary education in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. UK: University of Birmingham.

[6] Alsobhi, A., Khan, N. and Rahanu, H. (2014). Toward linking dyslexia types and symptoms to the available assistive technologies. 2014 IEEE 14th International Conference On Advanced Learning Technologies. 597-598.

[7] Annett, M. (1996) Laterality and types of dyslexia. Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews, 20(4). 631-636.

[8] BDA (2018) British Dyslexia Association Style Guide. Available from https://www.bdadyslexia.org.uk/advice/employers/creating-a-dyslexia-friendly-workplace/dyslexiafriendly-style-guide (10 January 2019).

[9] Béland, R. and Mimouni, Z. (2001) Deep dyslexia in the two languages of an Arabic/French bilingual patient. Cognition, 82(2). 77-126.

[10] Benmarrakchi, F., El Kafi, J. and Elhore, A. (2017) Communication technology for users with specific learning disabilities. Procedia Computer Science, 110(). 258-265.

[11] Benmarrakchi, F., El Kafi, J., Elhore, A. and Haie, S. (2017)Exploring the use of the ICT in supporting dyslexic students’ preferred learning styles: A preliminary evaluation. Education And Information Technologies, 22(6). 2939-2957.

[12] Critchley, M. (1968) Developmental dyslexia. Pediatric Clinics Of North America, 15(3). 669-676.

[13] Dymora, P. and Niemiec, K. (2019). Gamification as a supportive tool for school children with dyslexia. Informatics. 48.

[14] Elbeheri, G. (2005) Dyslexia in Egypt. The International Book Of Dyslexia: A Guide To Practice And Resources, 79-85.

[15] Exley, S. (2003) The effectiveness of teaching strategies for students with dyslexia based on their preferred learning styles. British Journal Of Special Education, 30(4). 213-220.

[16] Friedmann, N. and Coltheart, M. (2016) 35 Types of developmental dyslexia. Handbook Of Communication Disorders, 721.

[17] Friedmann, N. and Haddad-Hanna, M. (2014). Types of Developmental Dyslexia in Arabic. Handbook Of Arabic Literacy: Insights And Perspectives. Springer Netherlands. 119-151.

[18] Glazzard, J. (2010) The impact of dyslexia on pupils’ self-esteem. Support For Learning, 25(2). 63-69.

[19] Knivsberg, A., Reichelt, K. and Nødland, M. (1999) Comorbidity, or coexistence, between dyslexia and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. British Journal Of Special Education, 26(1). 42-47.

[20] Lyon, G., Shaywitz, S. and Shaywitz, B. (2003) A definition of dyslexia. Annals Of Dyslexia, 53(1). 1-14.

[21] Mahfoudhi, A., Everatt, J. and Elbeheri, G. (2011) Introduction to the special issue on literacy in Arabic. Reading And Writing, 24(9). 1011-1018.

[22] Mayer, R. and Moreno, R. (2002) Aids to computer-based multimedia learning. Learning And Instruction, 12(1). 107-119.

[23] Ministry of Education, MoE. (2021) Definition. Available from https://www.moe.gov.sa/ar/education/generaleducation/Pages/PeopleWithSpecialNeeds.aspx# (13 July 2019)

[24] Ouherrou, N., Elhammoumi, O., Benmarrakchi, F. and El Kafi, J. (2018). A heuristic evaluation of an educational game for children with dyslexia. 2018 IEEE 5th International Congress On Information Science And Technology (CiSt). 386-390.

[25] Reid, G. (2012) Dyslexia and inclusion: classroom approaches for assessment, teaching and learning. Routledge.

[26] Reid, G. (2015) Dyslexia: Teaching Approaches. Available from https://www.drgavinreid.com/freeresources/dyslexia-teaching-approaches/ (8 February 2020).

[27] Tafti, M., Hameedy, M. and Baghal, N. (2009) Dyslexia, a deficit or a difference: Comparing the creativity and memory skills of dyslexic and nondyslexic students in Iran. Social Behavior And Personality: An International Journal, 37(8). 1009-1016.

[28] Walker, J. (2014) Dyslexia: Causes, Performance Differences, and Treatment. Angelo State University Social Sciences Research Journal, 1(2).

[29] WHO (1992) The ICD-10 classification of mental and behavioural disorders: clinical descriptions and diagnostic guidelines. World Health Organization.

[30] Willcutt, E., Betjemann, R., McGrath, L., Chhabildas, N., Olson, R., DeFries, J. and Pennington, B. (2010) Etiology and neuropsychology of comorbidity between RD and ADHD: The case for multiple-deficit models. Cortex, 46(10). 1345-1361.

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